The 3 most beautiful podiums of Romain Grosjean in Formula 1

On the occasion of Romain Grosjean’s trophy reception, it’s time to look back at his 3 most beautiful podiums in F1.

Romain Grosjean’s career leaves a bitter taste for French fans, as he has never made it to the top step of the podium in 179 Grand Prix races. In his 11 years driving a Formula 1 car, Romain Grosjean achieved 10 podium finishes and led a total of 40 Grand Prix races between 2012 and 2015. This period represents the pinnacle of Romain Grosjean’s career, let’s take a trip down memory lane to remember his 3 most beautiful podium finishes in F1.

Belgium 2015

Back to August 23rd, 2015, at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. The end of the race is approaching. The Mercedes team is heading for an easy victory, with Lewis Hamilton leading the race since the start and Nico Rosberg comfortably securing second place ahead of the rest of the field. Despite a gearbox change that caused Lotus and their main driver at the time to lose five positions on the grid, resulting in Romain starting from ninth place, the former F1 driver delivered a measured performance that made a resounding impact behind the two Mercedes cars.

After regaining several positions at different moments throughout the race, Romain wanted to make his biggest move at the end of the race. And it was a fierce battle with Sebastian Vettel, in his first season with Ferrari, that would be the highlight of the former Haas driver’s performance.

Under constant pressure from the Lotus, the German driver abandons the race due to a puncture shortly after passing Raidillon on the 42nd lap.

He will declare after the race: « It’s good for the team and for me, of course. The good result from yesterday’s qualifying put a smile on my face, but today, the race was incredible. Everything fell into place at the right time, during those 43 laps. I drove with my heart today and pushed 100% throughout the race ».”

Japan 2013

October 13, 2013, Mark Webber takes pole position ahead of his teammate Sebastian Vettel for the first time this year, with Lewis Hamilton in 3rd place and Romain Grosjean completing the top 4. However, at the start, the ranking is completely disrupted by the superb surge from the Frenchman.

He takes the lead of the race at the first corner. Despite leading for 26 laps, the Lotus driver cannot compete against the superiority of the Red Bulls. On the 41st lap, Vettel definitively takes the lead by overtaking the Frenchman on the only DRS zone. Webber follows suit a few laps later, relegating Romain Grosjean to 3rd place.

At the end of the season, during an interview with Canal+, Romain Grosjean admits that it was one of the departures he feared the most. This is due to his completely failed start the previous year, where he collided with Webber at the first corner.

With his 7th podium at the time, he receives praise from the greatest, notably from Sebastian Vettel: “In Japan, I thought he would win his first victory. That was not the case and I was very happy about it, but it’s just a matter of time. I am certain that he will consistently fight for the win in the future.”

India 2013

In a Grand Prix marked by Sebastian Vettel’s 4th victory, Romain Grosjean completes a Franco-German podium with Vettel in 1st and Rosberg in 2nd. The Frenchman starts from far behind at the beginning of the race, as he achieved the 17th lap time in the qualifying session. An absolutely incredible comeback!

At the start, Romain Grosjean attempts a bold gamble: to keep the soft tires for 14 laps. Pirelli had indeed forbidden the drivers to go beyond fifteen laps, fearing the tire would explode. The Frenchman achieved a performance whose significance was seen towards the end of the race. During his first stint, he goes from 16th to 7th place in 14 laps.

After his pit stop, Grosjean comes out in 15th place and stays there for part of the race. However, the Frenchman persists and climbs back up to 4th place right behind his teammate at the time, Kimi Räikkönen. The Finn, on a risky strategy, is struggling with his tires and is asked to let Romain Grosjean pass.

This is one of the hottest conversations of the season between Kimi and his engineer. “Kimi, get off that f****** line!” shouted the chief engineer on the radio.